"Maybe." She told him as she bit her lip, a bit embarrassed. She drank, a little reluctantly, but was glad to be drinking something at least, even if she wasn't allowed to do it - or much of anything really - by herself.

She was taken aback by the choice. Although the toy shop might be tempting, she reasoned that there was still a large toy chest at home that she hadn't even opened yet, and thought that the chances of finding something she'd genuinely enjoy playing with, rather than something that was just babyish and cute, were minimal.

The clothes and nappies shop however, offered her the chance to do something about her current attire, which at the moment seemed much more tempting.

"The clothes shop." She said confidently, which was replaced with surprise a second later as her pacifier was suddenly pushed unceremoniously back into her mouth and quickly strapped around her head. She could only glare up at her master - which looked adorable - and pout as she gently suckled on the rubber teat.

- No need to be embarrassed about wanting to go shopping, sweetie - Matt chuckled and pet her behind her ears a bit.
- Kitten or not, you're still a little girl, so it's only natural. I'd be more surprised if you didn't want to go - he explained, and offered her the two choices. After some deliberation Alice picked the clothes and nappies store, and Matt already had a boutique in mind.
- Good choice - he nodded, but put the pacifier back in her mouth and strapped it around her head. Her cutie glare while she was sucking on it, made him smile.
- Don't worry, it only stays for today. Next time we come out, unless you do something silly, you'll be able to talk a hole in my belly. Now, I think I know a great place to start - Matt stood, taking hold of Alice's leash once more, and started walking in a slow pace to allow the thoroughly restrained kitten to waddle along without dragging her.
They were going to a boutique that was owned by a designer of Italian descent. The store was aptly named Il Piccolo Gatto, dealing in kitten costumes for human kids, but also designer clothes and accessories for nekos.
- Signore Braddock, how nice to see you again! - the owner greeted Matt upon entry, then spotted Alice, and almost melted into a puddle.
- You must be Alice! Aww, you're adorable! And wearing one of our creations, magnificent! - she exclaimed, as Matt gently removed the little kitten's pacifier gag.
- Now, be nice to the lady, Alice. - he warned, but also pat her on the head, and turned back to the owner.
- She's a very self-conscious kitten, and I'm pretty sure she wanted to come here to find some outfits more to her liking. Apparently the ones I picked are for some reason too cutesy for her, and make her look too infantile. At least that's what I understood. - he explained, and the the lady gave Alice a look so deep in thought that she could almost hear the gears in her head turning.
- What exactly don't you like on, for example, your current romper? - she asked.
- Is it maybe the lack of a skirt? Well that's a given, considering you need to wear that harness outside and it has a crotch strap... unless... - she pondered a bit, and then brightened up.
- Well, there might be something to remedy that. Care to take a look? - she asked Alice directly, even half kneeling down to her level, talking to her like she would to any little girl.

he squirmed a bit at his petting, still torn between putting on a big girl image and the fact that she rather liked being pet.

Sucking away she waddled after him, bells on her mittens jingling as she moved. It was going to take some getting used to, not just the bells herself, but also the attention it seemed to draw wherever she and her master went.

Creations? What was she wearing that this man had made, she wondered. Some of the restraints perhaps, or that annoyingly cute outfit she was wearing?

Pausing for a second, Alice cautiously nodded in the affirmative, even as she sucked at the pacifier, making it a very cute sight.

- Aww, she's an absolute cutie, signor Bradock. - the shop owner was absolutely floored by how the ltitle kitten looked at her, sucking on her pacifier.
- Aren't you now? - she looked at Alice with a big smile, and then straightened up once again and started walking towards the back of the store.
- Come on then, both of you. - she chirped happily, and was already excited about showing one of her newest pieces.
- I was always bothered about these harnesses. They make it so hard to wear anything half-decent. I mean, what could you do, pull a skirt over it? Nonsense... - she showed them to a smaller room, seemingly furhisned as a changing room and small photo studio, and walked to a closet, opening it up and browsing through the contents for the right size.
- So... since I couldn't get rid of the damn harness, I decided to design a dress around it! - and she showed a white one-piece with little pink and red roses on it, that had a locking back zipper.
The crotch was closed, and upon closer inspection, the straps and D-rings were visible, sewn into the dress material at the waist, chest, lining the leg holes and going up to serve as the shoulders of the dress and the base for the short, puffy sleeves that ended up as the upper arm cuffs, which could be clipped to the chest strap.
The D-rings on the waist and shoulders were each hidden by a small red bow.
Most importantly, the skirt part was actually functional, although still only reaching mid-thigh.
- I actually obtained an official permit for these, so they qualify as both a locking outfit and a restraint harness. So, would you like to give it a try? - she asked, looking between Matt and the neko.
- I certainly would give it a try, how about you? - Matt replied, and now Alice could feel two pairs of eyes on her.

Alice blushed at being called cute by this stranger, but as per usual, there wasn't much that she could actually do about it. For a second she perked up, thinking she might actually be let out of the ridiculous harness restraint system, but was disappointed when she saw that was not to be the case.

Not wanting to give her owner any excuse to restrain her further - if that was even possible - she could only nod meekly, suckling harder now. Though she was curious as to how they would get her from one outfit to the other.

Both adults brightened up, seeing her meek nod, and the woman pointed to a door, leading to a changing room. It also had a post in the middle, with a short chain attached.
- You can leash her to that while you changer her clothes - she explained.
- Tell me when you're done, I want to see her in that too. - she winked at Matt, and left them alone.
- Alright, sweetie. Let's try this then. - he led her to the post and clipped the chain to her collar, before proceeding to let her out of the dreaded harness, unclipping her mittens from the waist hooks and removing the chain from between her ankle cuffs, so she could step out of the mass of straps.
Then came the romper, and Matt unlocked the shoulders, pulling it down and leaving her only in her diaper, collar, booties and mittens momentarily, as he fetched the dress.
He helped her step into it, one foot at a time, and then pulled the outfit up her body, threaded her tail through the tail hole and her mittened hands through the sleeves, zippered it up on the back, locked the zipper, and then tightened down the upper arm restraints at the end of the short, puffy sleeves, clipped them to the D-rings on the chest, then her mittens to her waist on each side. She was secured once again, but this time she'd have to bend over to expose her padded rear, and the harness part wasn't nearly as obvious.
Matt called in the store owner once everything was done.
- We're done! - he called out, and she rushed in, doting over the dolled up little kitten.
- She's absolutely adorable in this! Can you remove her pacifier for a little while? I want to hear her opinion too! - she insisted, and Matt reluctantly unbuckled the strap on the back of her head, and freed Alice from her gag, so she could speak her mind.
- So? So?! What do you think, sweetie? - the lady asked, with visible childish excitment. This show of personality probably explained why the clothes looked like as they did.

Alice could only glare at the post as her collar was clipped to her chain, the most blatant reminder yet that she was mostly seen as just a pet to her owner and society at large.

She was glad to be free of the harness and immobilising restraints, however temporarily as it allowed her to actually move a bit. Though she suddenly found herself feeling rather self conscious as she saw herself in the mirror and realised she was dressed in just her cutesy disposable nappy and her remaining restraints.

Obediently she stepped into the new outfit, surprised by how comfortable and snug it was on the inside. Though looking again to the mirror she could see that she looked even cuter than before, thanks to the hiding of most of the unsightly restraints.

She was a bit taken aback by the removal of the pacifier and the prompt to speak. She'd been constantly suckling on the pacifier for a while now, and she might even consider it the one thing she liked about her new situation, so its removal was a bit like removing a minor security blanket.

"Um, Its nice, I guess..." She told them nervously. "Its rather comfy."

The post and the chain were the only ways that allowed Matt to change her into the other outfit, so there was little choice. in the matter.
However, the new dress was simply perfect, and the less visible restraints did indeed make it even cuter, despite the fact it hid her diaper a lot better than the romper.

Matt had no idea that she actually learned to like her pacifier, so he thought he'd actually make it easier on her when he took it out, and asked her opinion. After all, she was going to be the one wearing this outfit if they purchased.

With him smiling and the lady almost jumping out of excitment, it was no surprise her answer was shy. But, it was more than satisfying.
- I think we have a winner. - he stated, and the designer was almost explosing from happiness.
- Magnifico! Signor Bradock, I'll be more than happy to offer the dress for sale, and she can even stay in it, instead of having to be put back in that abysmal torture device. What do you say? - she asked, and Matt looked down to meet Alice's eyes, and replied:
- My only question is, where do I pay? - he smiled, and put back the kitten's pacifier gag, once again buckling it on the back of her head, and unclipped the chain from her collar, instead attaching her leash to it, leading her back to the storefront.

She continued to squirm as she was looked over, but she did agree that it was far better than the ridiculous harness and straps she'd been wearing before.

Unable to say anything with the paci-gag in her mouth, she simply sucked away as Matt lead her away with her leash, toddling adorably after her. Her nappy might be less visible, but it was still as thick as ever and equally capable of forcing a waddle from her walking, and that was before accounting for the ankle cuff chain.

As her owner paid for the rather expensive, if adorable and comfortable outfit, she wondered where they'd be going next. She hoped he hadn't forgotten about shopping for nappies.

With the new outfit, she was by far even more adorable and even she admitted it, comfortable - so it was absolutely out of question whether Matt would buy it. Money wasn't a problem, if he could afford her, he could definitely afford her clothes.

He still paid mind though, to her waddle and the ankle chain, dictating a pace she could relatively easily keep up with.
Matt indeed didn't forget about the nappies, and the next shop they targeted, was exactly that, a diaper store, actually pretty close by.
Walking inside, Matt pat his little kitten on the head, and knowing she still had very little means to communicate, leaned down and asked Alice:

- Sweetie, would you like me to take your paci out so you can tell me if you spot something you like? - and waited for a nod or headshake.